House sales are picking up in Prince William County after years of a downtrodden market that prompted thousands of foreclosures in the county.

The number of home sales per month in the county, Manassas and Manassas Park has risen for the last four months, compared with the same periods last year, according to statistics from local real estate tracker Metropolitan Regional Systems Inc.

But those sales have come at a cost — the average monthly sales price since January has dropped by about $115,000 from 2007.

“There’s currently a fire sale in real estate in Prince William,” said Rita Hawes, a real estate consultant based in Manassas. “Unless it is an emergency, I advise sellers not to sell.”

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In June, the number of sales jumped to 976, from 511 in June 2007. But the average June sales price plunged to $271,976, from $402,031.

The county’s thousands of foreclosures are providing the supply of houses at relatively inexpensive prices.

“Prince William is ground zero in [the D.C. area] for foreclosures,” said Peter Chinloy, a real estate professor at American University. “Forty percent of all foreclosures in Virginia come from that one county. In recent history, we haven’t seen anything like this.”

Foreclosures are continuing to pile up, despite the positive home-sale news. In May, 1,177 properties in the county were in some stage of foreclosure, according to figures released Friday by foreclosure-tracking firm RealtyTrac.

Jean Flannery, president of Flannery Property Management in Manassas, which oversees seven homeowners’ associations, said the lower prices are not necessarily great for buyers.

“I do not believe the mortgage companies allow for home inspection” on foreclosed properties, she said, noting that the properties are often sold “as is.”

With foreclosed houses sometimes vacated for more than a year, she said, those who buy them are often stuck with run-down or dilapidated homes.

Both Chinloy and Hawes said the drop in pricing could be slowed or reversed if more investors rented out houses with the intention of reinvesting in the property.

Hawes noted that local brokers are “screaming” at banks to lower prices on homes they own so that investors can get back in the market.

“Anybody who’s bought from 2003 to 2004 on, they’re just not in a position to sell,” Hawes said. “Why would you sell a new car for the price of a used car?”

dsherfinski@dcexaminer.com